Executive Committee of the American Institute of Physics
Minutes of Meeting
Members Present: R. A. Sawyer, Chairman; W. S. Baird; J. W. Buchta; W. C. Michels
Absent: J. W. Beams; S. A. Goudsmit; R. B. Lindsay
AIP Staff Present: Elmer Hutchisson; H. A. Barton; Wallace Waterfall; Mary M. Johnson
The Chairman called the meeting to order at 10:10 a.m.
1. Minutes
The minutes of the meeting of June 6, 1959, were approved as circulated.
2. Financial
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Statement for First Six Months and Projection to End of Year 1959
Copies of the above statement (copy attached) were distributed. The Treasurer stated that the present statement differs from the one previously distributed for the first six months of 1959 in that it includes a projection to the end of the year based on approval of the items described in 2(b) of these minutes. The projection anticipates a net income of $36,920 instead of the $4,625 originally budgeted for 1959. This increased net income is due largely to more advertising income and more income from Corporate Associate dues than expected. Income from subscriptions and publication charges will be larger than budgeted because of increased rates and more pages but this is off-set by increased publication costs and the cost of additional pages.
The Treasurer pointed out that administrative expense is practically on target. Public Information expense is projected below budget because our consulting service was discontinued. Education and Manpower is about as budgeted before inclusion of $10,000 for a handbook for school board members, described in Item 2(b) of these minutes.
RSI will show less loss than budgeted but the staff is somewhat concerned about its continuing appeal to subscribers and advertisers. JCP is expected to print about 340 more pages than budgeted but the loss is expected to be $10,000 less than budgeted because of increased income from the higher subscription rate and savings in some items. JAP will produce less net income than budgeted because of the large number of pages carrying conference proceedings. Publishing such proceedings in JAP appears to increase the attractiveness of the journal both to subscribers and advertisers and a formula has been worked out with the editor whereby we should be able to publish future conference proceedings without loss.
“The Physics of Fluids” is a “wash” operation at present because of Air Force support but there may be some concern about its finances when this support stops unless circulation increases.
“Physics Today” presents a bright picture over all because of substantially increased advertising revenue. The net cost of PT to the Institute in 1959 is expected to be about $3,800 or 19 cents per member.
In commenting on the balance sheet, the Treasurer reported that our net worth at June 30 was our land, building and equipment plus about $20,000 or a total of approximately $763,000, based on book values. Mr. Baird suggested that we should decrease our cash and the Treasurer replied that we do try to keep it down to around $100,000 but it may be higher than that for short periods while Treasury notes are being “rolled.”
Mr. Michels expressed concern about the fact that editorial mechanics costs are running over budget and the Treasurer said that the staff is also concerned and is studying the reasons. Mr. Michels also commented that subscription handling complaints have apparently decreased and he was pleased to see circulation costs lower than budgeted.
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Approval of Unbudgeted Items
The Director recalled that it had been decided to establish a John T. Tate award, to parallel the Karl Taylor Compton medal, for presentation to non-Americans. It was felt we would need about $20,000 toward this end and a committee to raise the funds was appointed. The Director recommended that the Institute now set aside $10,000 of its own funds as a start so an announcement can be made that half the total required was in hand. Mr. Biard (Baird) suggested instead that the Institute offer to match whatever contributions are made, up to a combined total of $20,000.00. A further suggestion was made that a sum of $10,000 be appropriated for something like “memorial funds” for a specified period of time. The following motion was then made, seconded and passed without dissenting vote:
MOVED that the sum of $10,000 be appropriated as a reserve for endowment of awards between now and the end of 1960.
Another motion was then made, seconded and passed without dissenting vote as follows:
MOVED that the Treasurer be authorized to draw funds from the reserve for endowment of awards to match those collected for the John T. Tate Memorial Fund up to the end of 1960.
With respect to the handbook for school board members, the Director explained our program in producing booklets for educational purposes. He said Mr. Kelly has been attempting to develop a book which would tell school board members how to evaluate and improve the teaching of high school physics in their own schools. The first draft of the handbook was sent to about a dozen people including physicists, school board superintendents and people in industry and most of the responses were favorable. In response to a request for a grant, NSF said they were willing to help prepare the book but could not assist in financing the distribution of it. The Director said the Institute could approach others for funds but that takes time, the manuscript is ready, and it should be printed and distributed as soon as possible to be most effective. A commercial publisher has been approached and, although no one has yet shown an interest, it is believed that one can be found to finance at least part of the printing and distribution. The Director proposed that we proceed at once to print 20,000 or 30,000 copies with the intention of distributing about 10,000 through our Corporate Associates and selling the rest through some publisher.
After some discussion the following motion was made and passed without dissenting vote:
MOVED that $10,000 be appropriated to underwrite the speedy preparation and publication of a handbook for school board members, and the staff be authorized to make some arrangement with a commercial publisher for further distribution with the hope of recovering something from the sale of copies.
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Major Medical Insurance
The Treasurer recalled that this subject had been discussed previously and he reported that the staff had been studying various proposals received in order to present a definite recommendation. The staff now recommends the Guardian plan which provides $10,000 maximum disability with $500 deductible, no co-insurance, and conversion rights upon retirement. The Treasurer outlined the proposed requirements for eligibility of employees and their dependents and said that, under these requirements, we expect to have 58 employees eligible as of December 1 this year. The Institute proposes to pay the whole cost which would be about $2,200 per year for present employees. This will add .5% to our fringe benefits which currently amount to 7.3% of payroll.
After brief discussion the following motion was made, seconded and passed without dissenting vote:
MOVED that the above-described major medical insurance plan be put into effect as of December 1, 1959.
3. Publications
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Increase in JAP Publication Charge From $25 to $30
The Director stated that the staff’s recommendation of a publication charge increase for JAP is based on a substantial increase in the size of the journal and this increase is expected to continue in the future. We could raise the subscription price again and may have to later but we want to encourage a large circulation and would prefer to keep the subscription price as low as possible. The proposed increase would bring the publication charge in line with that for JCP and PR.
After brief discussion, the following motion was made, seconded and passed without dissenting vote:
MOVED that the publication charge for JAP be increased to $30 per page, effective January 1, 1960.
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Authorization to Increase RSI Publication Charge from $25 to $30 When Appropriate
The Director said that, because of the situation reported previously, the staff would like authorization to increase the publication charge for RSI when and if additional funds are needed, from $25 to $30.00. This would bring it in line with many of our other journals. The following motion was made, seconded and passed without dissenting vote:
MOVED that the staff be authorized to increase the publication charge for RSI from $25 to $30 per page, when deemed appropriate.
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Status of the “Journal of Mathematical Physics”
The Director distributed copies of a sheet containing a brief description of JMP and listing the members of the Editorial Board (copy attached). He said the publication charge of $25 per page is in line with the amount specified in our request to NSF for funds to underwrite the journal. We received from NSF $64,800 to cover operations for three years. The editor already has several manuscripts in hand and has received promises of several more. The subscription price will be $8 for members and $10 for non-members.
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Resolution Thanking Clyde A. Hutchison, Jr., for his Services as Editor of JCP
The Director reported that Clyde A. Hutchison, Jr., has resigned as editor of JCP and J. Willard Stout has assumed the editorship. The following motion was then made on behalf of the Governing Board, seconded and passed unanimously:
RESOLVED: That the members of the Governing Board and staff of the American Institute of Physics hereby express their deep gratitude to Clyde A. Hutchison, Jr., for his invaluable service as Editor of “The Journal of Chemical Physics” from the period January 1953 to June 30, 1959. During this period, and due in large measure to his devoted efforts, the Journal has continued to grow in importance and has now become one of the world’s leading scientific periodicals. The Institute sends every good wish to Dr. Clyde Hutchison in his new responsibilities.
The Secretary was directed to transmit to Mr. Hutchison a copy of the above resolution.
4. Education Projects
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Report of Advisory Committee on Student Sections
The Director distributed copies of the above report and summarized its contents (copy attached). He noted particularly that the Committee recommends the Institute provide the services of a staff man who could devote approximately half his time to student organization and Student Sections. Mrs. Ethel Snider has been spending more than half her time as secretary for Student Sections but she is not in a position to render the services which a physicist could. We now have over 1,000 members of Student Sections. The Director stated that we have already employed Donald E. Cunningham to work half time on Student Sections and half time on the Visiting Scientists Programs of which there are now three.
The following motion was then made, seconded and passed without dissenting vote:
MOVED that the report of the Advisory Committee on Student Sections be accepted and that the staff be authorized to implement the recommendations contained therein within the limitations of approved budgets.
The Director reported that there has been no progress in our negotiations with Sigma Pi Sigma.
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Appointment of Committee to Administer Grant from Asia Foundation
The Director stated that we have received a grant of $2,500 from the Asia Foundation to help Asian physics students in this country. We are now receiving applications and recommend that a committee consisting of the following be appointed to administer the grant:
- Henry A. Boorse, Chairman
- Mark W. Zemansky
- Leon M. Lederman
Upon motion made, seconded and passed without dissenting vote, the above committee was appointed.
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International Conference on Education
The Director recalled that the Executive Committee had authorized the Institute to take an active role in organizing this conference and a planning meeting had been held last summer in Konstanz, Germany. Just about everybody who had been invited attended, except the Russian invitee, and there were representatives there from the US, Great Britain, France, Japan, Germany and Italy. Sanborn C. Brown was elected chairman of the planning group and, presumably, of the conference which is proposed for Paris in July 1960. A meeting of the executive committee will be held some time in October in Paris. IUPAP sponsorship was sought and given.
It is difficult to estimate the number of people who will be involved but it was felt that a maximum of 100 would be a desirable limit. The proposed budget for the 1960 conference is about $40,000 and various organizations have been mentioned as possible sources for funds. AIP has applied to NSF for $14,000 and we have asked and received agreement from the Asia Foundation for support of Asian physicists attending the conference.
5. Public Information Projects
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Solid State Seminar
The Director reported that the Institute proposes to sponsor a series of seminars on the fundamentals of physics for newswriters, the first of which will be on solid state physics and will be held in our building on October 30. The Director named some of the participants and said that so far we expect 40 or 50 newswriters from the eastern United States. The National Association of Science Writers is co-sponsoring the seminar but the relatively small costs will be borne by AIP. There followed a brief discussion of whether one day was sufficient to cover the field adequately.
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Archive Journal Information Service
The Director recalled that we had applied to the Rockefeller Foundation for a grant to expand our Public Information Service but had been turned down. They suggested that we try NSF and the Sloan Foundation, but so far we have received no replies from them. The Director explained that this project would involve publicizing lay-language versions of articles appearing in our archive journals.
6. New Corporate Associates to be Elected
The Secretary reported that the following organizations had requested to become Corporate Associates of the Institute and, on motion duly made and carried, they were so elected:
- Allen-Bradley Company
- The Pure Oil Company
- Allied Research Associates
- Bolt, Beranek & Newman, Inc.
- W. R. Grace Co.
- Owens-Corning Fiberglas Corporation
- Republic Steel Corp. (for 1960)
- Allis Chalmers Manufacturing Company (for 1960)
The Director then distributed a memorandum indicating that we now have 144 Corporate Associates of which 50 are new for 1959. We have realized a net income of $61,927.50 from their dues this year.
7. Policy on Exhibits
The Director distributed copies of a document which contained a history of our experience with exhibits, problems we have encountered, and suggestions for future exhibits. Our exhibit program was undertaken originally as a service to advertisers but growth has made available space inadequate and a policy must now be established to assure fair treatment to all who wish to exhibit. The Director stated that first priority for space at Member Society meetings must be given to meeting rooms, and he asked for comments on the suggestion of holding an exhibit apart from Society meetings at the New York Coliseum, for example, and perhaps tying it in with a meeting of Corporate Associates.
Mr. Baird commented that physics is now big business, progress is measured by equipment, and he believes the Institute should think seriously of putting up a “bang-up” show – one which might take two years of preparation. Mr. Michels said that if such an exhibit were to be held in connection with a Member Society meeting there would undoubtedly be a conflict of interest and he suggested that it might be held in connection with special meetings on instrumentation. It was pointed out that the Corporate Associates have a large interest in instrumentation and technology and it was agreed that the problem of exhibits would be a good subject to bring up at the Arden House meeting of Corporate Associates and Member Society officers.
Mr. Baird recommended that the Executive Committee or Governing Board appropriate some money to study the question, and that the study be made as soon as possible. It was agreed that this recommendation should be presented to the Governing Board for approval and the following motion was made, seconded and passed without dissenting vote:
MOVED that the Executive Committee recommend to the Governing Board that an amount not to exceed $5,000 be appropriated for a study of the possibility of the Institute’s staging large-scale exhibits.
The Director said that for January APS-AAPT meetings we are committed to the Hotel New Yorker and surrounding facilities for 1960 and 1961; and to the Statler, which will provide more exhibit space, for 1962 through 1964.
8. Conroy, Smith & Company Survey
The Secretary recalled that a survey had been undertaken by Conroy, Smith & Company, our accountants, to determine how we could improve our circulation and accounting operations. After about a year of study their recommendation is that we start by installing a punch card system in our Circulation Department. The Scriptomatic system for addressing meets all of our requirements best and, although the impression it makes is a fuzzy one, it is acceptable to the Post Office Department. The Secretary described the differences between the Remington Rand and IBM systems which would be used with Sciptomatic and said that, after weighing all factors, we have concluded that the Remington Rand system best suits our needs. Equipment costs are estimated at $13,000 per year for Remington Rand-Scriptomatic and $15,500 per year for IBM-Scriptomatic based on leasing IBM or Remington Rand equipment and purchasing Scriptomatic and amortizing it over a 5-year period. Based on our current circulation operations, the new system could be handled by 8 people where 13 are now used but our rate of growth will probably absorb replace personnel. Our first objective is to improve the accuracy and speed of our subscription handling procedures. Later we will tie in our accounting and billing operations to the punch cards and the end result should be a modern and efficient setup comparable to what similar organizations are now using. Conversion cost for circulation is estimated at not more than $14,000 and the time required is about six months after receipt of equipment. This would normally be charged to the Circulation Department and distributed over the various journals. After brief discussion the following motion was made, seconded and passed without dissenting vote:
MOVED that the staff be authorized to proceed with conversion to the punch card system for our Circulation Department operations as described above.
9. Preview of Governing Board Agenda
Copies of the agenda for the Governing Board meeting to be held on October 2 were distributed by the Director and he called attention to Item 3 – Confirmation of Mail Ballot on Florence Agreement. The Director reported that the vote of the Governing Board on endorsement of the Florence Agreement was 13 for, 1 against, and 2 undecided. He then read a letter he had received from Senator Fulbright on this subject.
10. Preview of Arden House Program
The Director distributed copies of the agenda for the Arden House meetings and reviewed the program briefly.
11. AIP Lapel Pin
The Secretary reported receipt of a letter addressed to the Chairman which suggested that a lapel pin bearing the emblem of AIP be considered for distribution to physicists. No action was taken.
12. Member Society Annual Contribution to AIP
The Secretary reported receipt of a letter from Mr. Michels in which he stated the AAPT Executive Committee was unanimously in favor of continuation of the 10% of dues contribution to AIP.
13. Next Meeting
After a brief discussion of possible dates, the next meeting of the Executive Committee, which will be the budget meeting, was set for Friday, December 11, at 10:00 a.m.
The meeting adjourned at 1:15 p.m.